Francisco de Madina (Aita means ‘Father’)
was born in Oñate, Guipuzcoa
on 29 January 1907 and died in his home
town on 30 June 1972. Ordained a Canon
Regular of the Lateran in 1929, he studied
music and theology at the Order’s seminaries
in his native country before being assigned
to a post in Argentina. Many of his
early works composed during this period
exhibit influences of his adopted home
particularly gaucho music. He was reassigned
to Albany (New York) in 1955, where
his priestly responsibilities and work
as organist left him little time for
composition. Kalmus published several
of his scores, Nicanor Zabaleta was
an enthusiast of Madina’s harp music.
The Romero brothers participate in this
recording and frequently performed Madina’s
guitar music. He returned to Oñate
in 1971.

The Concierto Vasco
for four guitars and orchestra is
the most substantial work here. Make
no mistake it is no piece of fluff.
It is quite a dramatic stormy piece
and full of eerie superbly contrived
and atmospheric writing both for orchestra
and the solo group. Grateful solo lines
also emerge for the violin and for the
woodwind. This is a melodically heart-warming
and fresh piece of writing. The whispered
drip-drop pavane style Eresia third
movement is memorably beautiful and
the whole would make a very welcome
contrast to the Rodrigo or Ponce guitar
concertos. The Fandango finale creaks
a little but finales are notoriously
difficult.

With the death of Celedonio
on 8 May 1996 Los Romero now comprise
Celin, Pepe, Lito and Celino (the players
here). Madina wrote four concertos and
five suites for Los Romero. I hope that
there will be recordings of the other
three concertos. On the present showing
they will be well worth hearing. Incidentally
this concerto was premiered by Los Romero
and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Arthur Fiedler. Within
six days the Los Angeles Philharmonic
Orchestra and Raphael Frühbeck
de Burgos with Angel and Pepe Romero
premiered Rodrigo’s Concierto Madrigal
at the Hollywood Bowl.

The three movement
Basque Rhapsody is another brightly-hued
piece. The Zortzikoa first movement
and Jaia finale are uproarious.
There’s another tender Eresia as
centre-piece incorporating the suggestion
of marine scenery and the dazzling glittering
waves. As with the Concierto the
writing is highly coloured, sometimes
impressionistic, never thorny, always
melodic and accessible. As with the
concerto the influence of Ravel, Debussy
and Prokofiev can be felt but other
parallels also occur including Vaughan
Williams and de Freitas Branco.

The four movement Concertino
Vasco for harp and orchestra is
all plangency and fragile delight -
a successor to Danse Sacré
et Danse Profane. The second movement
once again rocks the listeners’ worries
away with its becalmed ‘pavane’ and
gently singing strings. The movements
are all fairly short - about four minutes
on average - and never outstay their
welcome. What a discovery!

The second disc collects
together a number of Madina’s shorter
scores. There’s the florid, almost operatic
Aita Gurea, the light and folksy
Basque Christmas Suite (comparable
with Prokofiev’s Winter Bonfires
suite), the pocket oratorio Le
Cadena de Oro complete with breathy
narrator - the story is one of poetic
justice. The serenely hymn-like Agur
Maria, like the preceding pieces
on CD2, is for orchestra and chorus.
The Basque Children’s Overture is
for orchestra alone and uses Basque
children’s songs in a manner similar
to and to much the same effect as Quilter’s
A Children’s Overture. Everything
is bright and fresh and taut with rhythmic
energy. English-speaking listeners will
certainly recognise some of the tunes
but under different titles. More grown-up
is the three part Christmas Triptych
- a sweet confection, serene throughout
and delightfully sleepy in the Vagit
infans. You might think of RVW’s
Dives and Lazarus. The Danza
whirls along and kicks up the dust
with the leader’s solo violin adding
zest to the stamping rumpus. It was
premiered by the Reno Philharmonic Orchestra
in 1969. Finally there’s the three movement
Orreaga suite which is explosive,
and folksy recalling wheezing village
bands as well as Ravel’s Rhapsodie
Espagnole. Madina is a prince when
it comes to slow movements and his Itun
blooms slowly and quietly - a sort
of sighing counterpart to Walton’s Touch
Her Soft Lips.

The recorded sound
is opulent with plenty of lively highs
and stunning bass extension.

The set is typically
well documented. Pity they could not
have got the two discs and booklet into
a single width case.

The Basque Ministry
of Culture and the Mondragón
Corporación Cooperativa should
take a bow for their continuing support
for this glorious series which carries
the Basque lands and culture into households
all over the world. By the way Claves,
the Basque Ministry of Culture are not
your principle supporter but
your principal supporter.
Got it right in all the other languages
but not English. A trivial error in
the face of such a generous hearted
and fascinating production.

The next and tenth
CD in the Basque collection will be
dedicated to Juan Crisóstomo
de Arriaga on the 200th anniversary
of his birth.

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